The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1887-06-22
THE HARTFORD.
A HISTORY OF ADMIRAL FAR.
RAGUTS OLD FLAGSHIP.
The Many Times She Was Under
Fire During the Late Civil War
How Farragut Lashed Him.
self to the Rigging.


gren guns. Her first cruise, and on
which Captain Charles Lowndes, placed
on the retired list, as commodore IN
1862, commanded the ship, was to the
East Indies, the vessel forming portion
of the Asiatic squadron. Ordered home
at the outbreak of the civil war, the
Hartford, with the battery increased to
twenty-five guns, with the other vessels
DESIGNATED to form the fleet under Farra-
gut for operations in the Lower Mlssls-
sippi, rendezvoused at Key West in the
middle of March, 1862. Commander
Richard wainwright, killed in battle at
Nueces River August 10, 1862, was the
captain, and the vessel was selected as
the flagship.
According to the original plan of Far
ragut for the passage of the forts below
New Orleans, he was to lead in the Hart
ford, but this was changed, and in the
order finally formed the Hartford led the
center division. On the morning OF
April "a, 1862, according to signal, at 2
o'clock the fleet commenced to get un-
der way. At A. NJ. Forts st. Philip
and jackson were attacked and passed
under such fire as the world has rarely
seen, the fleet continuing on to New Or
leans and anchoring abreast of the city,
having sustained loss of twenty-four
killed and eighty-six wounded, taking
possession of the city at noon of April 20,
1862.
In the engagement and passage of the
Vicksburg batteries, January l, 1863, the
Hartford, Captain James S. Palmer, sus-
tanned loss of one killed and thirteen
wounded, Flag Officer David G.. Farra-
gut receiving a slight confusion. On the
return to New Orleans the ship again ran
the batteries at Vicksburg. March IA,
1868, the Hartford engaged and passed
the batteries at Port Hudson for coop
Grafton in the movement of General
Banks's army up Red River, sustaining a
loss of two killed and six wouded.
The Hartford, with the steam
gunboat Albatros lashed alongside,
alone of the fleet reaching the
mouth of Red river, effectually cutting
off the supplies for Port Hudson. In
this engagement the United States
frigate Mississippi was lost, being set
fire to an6 abandoned by her officers and
crew, having grounded directly under
the guns of the fort. The next grand
scene of action in which the Hartford
participated was that of Mobile Bay. 1t
was protected at the entrance by two
strongs forts, Gaines and Morgan, the
former mounting twenty-one heavy guns
and the latter forty-eight, and Fort
Powell, higher up, commanded the fair
way leading to the city of Mobile. The
Confederates also had the iron-clad ram
Tennessee and gunboats Morgan, Selma
and Gaines. At $40 A. NJ, August 8,
1864, the Hartford, Captain Percival
Drayton, with the gunboat Metacomet
lashed alongside, accompanied by the
other vessels of the fleet, crossed the bar.
With the exception of the monitors, the
vessels were lashed in pairs so that in
case any of them were disabled they
could be towed out of action. The
Brooklyn, Captain James Alden, ship
of the same class as the Hartford,
started in the lead. but when the moni-
tor Tecumseh, Commander Tunis A. NJ.
Craven, on the inshore side of the Brook
lyn was struck by torpedo, going down
with her captain and nearly all her Off
GERS and crew, only some half dozen es-
Gaping through the turret, Captain AL
den stopped the headway of his ship for
a few moments, and signaled back, 1--WE
have lost our best monitor and are run
ming into nest of torpcdoes." The gal
lant old Admiral made use of strong lam
guage about the torpedoes, and shouted
the order to Captain Dayton "Go ahead"
and ringing the bells of the engine-room
for full speed, the Hartford passed the
Brooklyn and took the lead, opening a
heavy and destructive fire on the forts.
After the bombardment and passage of
the forts, while the fleet was at anchor,
the Confederate ironclad Tennessee, COM
manded by Admiral Franklin Buchanan,
the same officer who commanded the
Merrimac in the famous battle with the
Monitor in Hampton Roads, came boldly
out and attacked the fleet, but was dis
abled and captured. The Hartford's
loss was twenty-five killed and twenty
eight wounded The loss was greater
during the fight with the Tennessee than
in the engagement with the forts. The
Hartford was struck twenty times, by the
heaviest shot and shell then known to
naval warfare, and while in the act of
ramming the Tennessee came near being
sunk by the United States steamer Lack
awanna running into her. She was cut
down almost to the waters edge, and for
q moment there was belief that the ship
was going down. The men, with thor
ough discipline and the stern sense of
duty, strengthened by the experience of
the many terrific scenes of battles through
which the grand old ship had passed,
stood by their stations. They were going
down, if 60 they must, like the Cumber-
land, with the flag flying at the fore and
to the last firing their guns; but whilst
they faltered not, there arose the cry:
"Save the Admiralr' They deemed his
life too precious to be lost, and in their
pride of and affection for him uttered Il
loud protest against what they were afraid
he would do-be the last man out Of the
ship.
The battle of Mobile Bay was marked
BY an incident which has made it even
more famous than the great battles of
Farragut in the Mississippi. The story
of how the grand old Admiral directed
his feet and fought the action, lashed in
the rigging of the Hartford, has been il
lustrated in pictures and engravings, and
told in poetry and prose so often and so
eloquently that every schoolchild knows
it. In the palace of the Car of Russia,
at St. Petersburg, hangs in conspicuous